Thanks to painstaking reforestation efforts, the population of these endangered monkeys was steadily growing until an outbreak of yellow fever hit Brazil in 2018, wiping out a third of the tamarins. Undeterred, Ruiz’s team devised an ambitious new experiment: This spring, they would start vaccinating many of the remaining wild monkeys.

Enter the coronavirus, which is now hampering critical work to protect threatened species and habitats worldwide.

First, members of Ruiz’s team exposed to the virus had to be quarantined. Then the government closed national parks and protected areas to both the public and researchers in mid-April, effectively barring scientists from the reserves where tamarins live.

“We are worried about missing the window of opportunity to save the species,” said Ruiz, the president of the nonprofit Golden Lion Tamarin Association. “We hope that we ... can still do our work before a second wave of yellow fever hits.”

While the scientists follow government guidelines, they know that people intent on illegally exploiting the rainforests are still entering the parks, because several motion-activated research cameras have been smashed.

Around the world, government resources diverted to pandemic efforts have opened opportunities for illegal land clearing and poaching. Lockdowns also have derailed the eco-tourism that funds many environmental projects, from South America’s rainforests to Africa’s savannahs.

“Scientists and conservationists have faced interruptions from big global disasters before, like an earthquake or a coup in one country,” said Duke University ecologist Stuart Pimm, founder of the...

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Sat, 6 Jun 2020 19:56:19 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/How-messaging-technology-is-helping-to-fuel-15321895.php
article15321895
When a friend shared a Facebook post with Michelle Burris inviting her to protest in downtown Washington, D.C., last Saturday, she knew she had to go. So she bought a Black Lives Matter mask from a street vendor before marching the streets of the district with a “No Justice, No Peace" sign.

After that march ended, she pulled up details on Instagram for a car caravan demonstration just a few blocks away. “It was extremely powerful, not only Facebook but Instagram,” Burris said. “It was very easy to mobilize.”

Protesters are using a variety of technology tools to organize rallies, record police violence and communicate during the marches sweeping the U.S. and other countries following the death of George Floyd. Some of that involves secure messaging services like WhatsApp, Signal and Telegram, which can encrypt messages to thwart spies. Those apps, along with others for listening to police scanners and recording video, are enjoying an uptick in popularity.

But experts say convenience and reach are key. “Reaching as many people as possible is the number one criterion for which platform someone is going to use,” said Steve Jones, a University of Illinois at Chicago media researcher who studies communication technology.

That means Twitter, Facebook and Facebook-owned Instagram remain the easiest ways for people to organize and document the mass protests. Facebook's tools remain popular despite a barrage of criticism over the platform's inaction after President Donald Trump posted a message that suggested protesters in Minneapolis could be shot.

“I don’t want to support or be a part of something that is possibly supporting Trump and his racist, hate filed spew,” said Sarah Wildman, who's been to three protests in Atlanta and has used Instagram exclusively to locate and to document the demonstrations...

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Sat, 6 Jun 2020 17:26:20 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/German-police-detain-11-from-alleged-child-sex-15321932.php
article15321932
BERLIN (AP) — German police have detained 11 people suspected of involvement in the sexual abuse of at least three children, officials said Saturday.

Prosecutors said the group used sophisticated technology to encrypt their communication, and that police secured hundreds of terabytes of video footage during raids in the western city of Muenster.

The main suspect, a 27-year-old computer technician whose name wasn't released due to privacy rules, has two previous convictions for distributing images of child sex abuse, officials said. The victims include his partner's 10-year-old son, a 5-year-old and a 12-year-old.

Judges ordered seven of the suspects, including the computer technician and his 45-year-old mother, held in jail pending further investigation.

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Sat, 6 Jun 2020 17:09:08 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/US-outlines-4-6B-plan-to-protect-Miami-from-15321821.php
article15321821
MIAMI (AP) — The federal government is proposing a $4.6 billion plan to protect the low-lying Miami area from the effects of climate change, including the construction of miles of sea walls.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers released a draft plan Friday calling for walls to protect the area from sea level rise that could reach about 13 feet (4 meters) in height.

The Miami Herald reported Saturday that the plan is designed to protect tens of thousands of homes and businesses from flooding.

The plan also calls for movable barriers at the mouths of three waterways, elevating and flood-proofing thousands of buildings throughout the county and restoring mangroves in vulnerable areas.

The plan does not contain previous proposals to buy out hundreds of homes and convert them into parks or open spaces.

The Corps of Engineers plans to hold online public meetings on the proposal on Tuesday and Thursday next week.

Amateur astronauts, private space stations, flying factories, out-of-this-world movie sets — this is the future the space agency is striving to shape as it eases out of low-Earth orbit and aims for the moon and Mars.

It doesn’t quite reach the fantasized heights of George Jetson and Iron Man, but still promises plenty of thrills.

“I’m still waiting for my personal jetpack. But the future is incredibly exciting,” NASA astronaut Kjell Lindgren said the day before SpaceX’s historic liftoff.

“I see this as a real possibility,” she said. “You’re going to see low-Earth orbit open up.”

The road to get there has never been so crowded, with Elon Musk’s SpaceX company leading the pack.

A week ago, SpaceX became the first private company to send people into orbit, something accomplished by only three countries in nearly 60 years. The flight to the International Space Station returned astronaut launches to the U.S. after nine long years.

“This is hopefully the first step on a journey toward a civilization on Mars,” an emotional Musk told journalists following liftoff.

Closer in time and space is SpaceX's involvement in a plan to launch Tom Cruise to the space station to shoot a movie in another year or so. NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine embraces the idea. He wants NASA to be just one of many customers in this new space-traveling era, where private companies own and fly their own spaceships and sell empty seats.

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Sat, 6 Jun 2020 15:06:24 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Whiz-kid-13-year-old-girl-heads-to-South-15321406.php
article15321406
AIKEN, S.C. (AP) — Caitlin Shirey, a 13-year-old homeschooled student, said she has a “pretty normal life.” She likes reading, watching movies and hanging out with friends. She practices martial arts, took dance classes and has been horseback riding for years.

But Caitlin is also unique, in that, this fall, she won’t be a freshman in high school like most kids her age. She’ll be a full-time college student at USC Aiken.

Despite being younger than most high school students, Caitlin has already taken the SATs, accumulated 17 credit hours from dual-enrollment at USC Aiken, and was accepted into three South Carolina colleges and universities, with scholarships.

Her dream is to pursue her passion for science and become a cardiothoracic surgeon.

“I’ve always loved science as a kid,” Caitlin said. ”... Through the years, my fondness for science has grown greatly. When I thought about what job I might want in the future, I knew I wanted it to have something to do with science, specifically something surgical.”

Caitlin initially wanted to be a veterinary surgeon. She stumbled upon a video of a heart transplant on YouTube by chance, which she proceeded to “watch with awe.”

“Instead of two men losing their lives, one was able to save another,” Caitlin said. “I was so fascinated by all of it. I really wanted to experience the feeling myself of holding a heart in my hand and saving lives. It was on that day that I knew I wanted to be a cardiothoracic surgeon. It just feels right.”

Caitlin said she has “always” been supported by her mother, Elizabeth Shirey, who discovered her daughter’s brilliance when she was still in diapers.

“I noticed there was something different about Caitlin pretty much from the beginning,” Shirey said. “At 18...

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Sat, 6 Jun 2020 05:01:10 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Facebook-removes-nearly-200-accounts-tied-to-hate-15320628.php
article15320628
Facebook has removed nearly 200 social media accounts linked to white supremacy groups that planned to encourage members to attend protests over police killings of black people — in some cases with weapons, company officials said Friday.

The accounts on Facebook and Instagram were tied to the Proud Boys and the American Guard, two hate groups already banned on the platforms. Officials were already monitoring the accounts in preparation for removing them when they saw posts attempting to exploit the ongoing protests prompted by the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

“We saw that these groups were planning to rally supporters and members to physically go to the protests and in some cases were preparing to go with weapons," said Brian Fishman, Facebook's director of counterterrorism and dangerous organizations policy.

The company did not divulge details of the account users — such as their specific plans for protests or where in the U.S. they live. It said “approximately” 190 accounts were removed overall.

Both the Proud Boys and American Guard had been banned from Facebook for violating rules prohibiting hate speech. Facebook said it will continue to remove new pages, groups or accounts created by users trying to circumvent the ban.

Earlier this week, Facebook announced the removal of a “handful” of other accounts created by white supremacists who had been posing on Twitter as members of the far-left antifa movement.

Facebook announced two other actions on Friday to root out networks of fake accounts used in attempts to manipulate public opinion in Africa and Iraq:

— Hundreds of fake Instagram and Facebook accounts created in Tunisia in an alleged effort to influence elections in that country and other French-speaking nations in sub-Saharan Africa:

Utes athletic director Mark Harlan said in a statement Friday that he was made aware of a social media post that referenced the text message.

Utah will have an outside firm review the matter for more details and to determine whether it was an isolated incident. Morgan will be suspended until the review is completed.

“The use of any form of racist language is not only antithetical to our policies and our values, but it is an affront to all of us, especially our African-American community members,” Harlan said.

Morgan acknowledged use of the slur and apologized in a statement released by the school.

“In 2013 I made a terrible mistake,” he said. “I used a racial slur in a text message. This language is offensive and hurtful to not only the African-American community, but to all. Immediately after sending it, I apologized to the recipient and his family. I am also heartbroken over the potential breach of trust with my fellow coaches, and with the young men in our program, both past and present.”

Scalley has been an assistant at Utah for 13 years, the past five as defensive coordinator.

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More AP college football: https://apnews.com/APTop25CollegeFootballPoll and https://apnews.com/Collegefootball and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25

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Fri, 5 Jun 2020 23:03:28 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Reddit-co-founder-leaves-board-urges-black-15320425.php
article15320425
Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian announced his resignation from the board of the social media site and urged the board to replace him with a black candidate.

Ohanian, who is white, implicitly linked his move to protests around the globe over the killing of George Floyd, a black man who died in Minneapolis after a police officer pressed his knee against his neck for several minutes, even after he stopped pleading for air and became unresponsive.

The entrepreneur, who is married to tennis star Serena Williams, said he made the decision for the sake of his daughter.

“I’m writing this as a father who needs to be able to answer his black daughter when she asks: “What did you do?,” Ohanian said in a blog post. He pledged to use future gains on his Reddit stock to “serve the black community, chiefly to curb racial hate.”

He also said he would give $1 million to Colin Kaepernick’s Know Your Rights Camp. Former NFL player Kaepernick is known for kneeling to protest police brutality and racism in 2016, and later filed a grievance claiming the league had blacklisted him as a result.

Reddit, based in San Francisco, calls itself “the front page of the internet” and has millions of users. LIke all social media sites, it has had issues over the years balancing freedom of speech against posts with racist, inflammatory and abusive intent.

Co-founder and CEO Steve Huffman said in a Reddit post that the board would honor Ohanian's wish to be replaced by a black candidate. He also said Reddit was working with moderators to explicitly address hate speech.

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Fri, 5 Jun 2020 21:04:30 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Idaho-Supreme-Court-considers-State-15320536.php
article15320536
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Idaho's Supreme Court justices seemed skeptical on Friday about whether the Legislature can legally shift some duties previously handled by one statewide elected official to a different entity.

The question — of exactly which responsibilities the superintendent of public instruction is constitutionally required to handle — was at the center of arguments in a lawsuit between State Superintendent Sherri Ybarra, the Legislature and the state board of education.

Ybarra filed the lawsuit earlier this year after lawmakers approved removing $2.7 million from her budget along with 18 full-time information technology employees. At the time, lawmakers said they wanted to consolidate the data management functions under the board of education.

Ybarra holds a seat on that board, but the rest of the members are appointed by the governor, and the board oversees charter schools, colleges and universities and other programs along with the public K-12 school system that Ybarra is elected to lead.

Ybarra contends that the Legislature’s move includes the Idaho System for Educational Excellence, which tracks enrollments, grades, test scores and other information that supports budgeting decisions and accountability measures. She said removing that system from her management means other critical office functions are likely to be damaged.

Mary York, a private law firm attorney representing the Legislature, said the framers of the state Constitution intended to consolidate the superintendent of public instruction's duties with the then-newly created board of education. At the time, the board was made up of just three people, and the framers believed three heads were better than one, she said.

But Justice Robyn Brody said York's argument, if taken to the logical conclusion, suggests the Legislature “could in...

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Fri, 5 Jun 2020 20:36:40 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Maryland-moves-into-Phase-2-of-coronavirus-15319778.php
article15319778
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Maryland further eased restrictions imposed to stop the spread of the coronavirus by allowing businesses to reopen Friday, but some of the state's largest jurisdictions are waiting to enter Phase 2 of the state's reopening plan.

Gov. Larry Hogan announced earlier this week that nonessential businesses can reopen at 5 p.m. Friday as the state begins Phase 2 of the economy's reopening. The governor ordered nonessential businesses closed on March 23 in response to the virus.

Hogan announced Friday that the state has conducted more than 405,000 virus tests. The state's COVID-19 positivity rate has dropped to 8.4%, the governor said, and the total number of hospitalizations in Maryland has dropped to its lowest level since April 13. There were 1,076 people in hospitals due to the virus as of Friday morning.

Businesses that will be able to reopen include manufacturing, construction, large and small retail shops, specialty vendors, wholesalers and warehouses. Offices including information technology firms, legal offices, accounting, banking and financial institutions, and insurance agencies also can open.

Real estate offices, travel agencies, auto dealer showrooms and bank branches also can reopen with public health and safety guidance recommendations in place, the governor's office said. That includes wearing face coverings during face-to-face interactions, taking workers' temperatures and limiting the proximity of employees by rotating work hours. Employees who can are being urged to continue working from home when possible.

Personal services such as nail and tanning salons, message therapy and tattoo parlors can reopen with 50% capacity and by appointment only.

The suspect, identified by police as Daniel Williams, 33, of South Burlington, Vermont, was taken to Baystate Medical Center in Springfield after the shooting on Route 2 east in Shelburne Falls at about 9 a.m., according to an emailed statement from state police spokesman David Procopio.

Massachusetts State Police had been notified by Vermont police that a pickup truck they were looking for may be headed to Massachusetts, the statement said.

The trooper exited his cruiser and was in the process of laying down the deflation device at the Buckland-Shelburne line when the suspect's vehicle approached and drove at him as he stood on the road, the statement said.

The trooper fired, the truck struck the cruiser, then continued for several more miles on damaged tires before the suspect was captured in Greenfield.

The suspect remains in the hospital and it's not clear if he has an attorney.

The district attorney is investigating the shooting. The trooper's name was not made public.

The statewide tests were called off after a University of Minnesota study found that the drug hydroxychloroquine had no benefit over a placebo as a way to prevent COVID-19 in people exposed to the coronavirus. The drug hydroxychloroquine has attracted controversy after President Donald Trump promoted it as an antidote to COVID-19, but was shown in studies not to help, and even to be harmful, to people hospitalized by the virus.

Sanford Health, Avera Health and Monument Health were collaborating on the tests, which were sponsored by the state of South Dakota. Gov. Kristi Noem said last month the state was going ahead with plans to test small amounts of the drug.

“After closely reviewing the new research, our clinical trial team determined that the South Dakota study is unlikely to see different results,” said Dr. Susan Hoover, Sanford Health infectious disease doctor and principal investigator of the study.

The South Dakota trial was in the early stages and had just recently opened for enrollment.

Noem said in a statement that the state “will continue to invest our resources into the most promising approaches to preventing and treating COVID-19."

The partners are continuing to evaluate options for collaborating on statewide COVID-19 research.

The nurses at All India Institute of Medical Sciences, a leader in treatment of COVID-19 cases, have been protesting since Monday over long shifts and the need to use congested cubicles to change in and out of personal protective equipment, a possible health risk.

More than 350 medical workers at AIIMS and 150 family members have been infected by the virus since March, said Dr. D.K. Sharma, the hospital's medical superintendent. He said about 60% have recovered.

“If day after day our health care workers are infected ... we are going to face a big issue,” said Fameer C.K., general secretary of the union that represents 5,000 nurses at AIIMS.

The union issued the threat to stay home from work next Wednesday after talks with the hospital administration on Thursday ended without agreement, he said.

Hospital authorities refused to comment on the protest.

So far, hospitals in India have not been overwhelmed by the coronavirus epidemic. The country has recorded over 220,000 cases, including 6,000 deaths. But with the number of cases increasing daily and the threat that upcoming monsoon rains will bring other diseases such as dengue and malaria, cracks have begun showing in India’s fragile, understaffed healthcare system.

The concerns raised by nurses at AIIMS are echoed by medical personnel at other government hospitals in the city, said Anita Panwar, a member of another nursing union.

In Mumbai, the city with the most cases, doctors are not being paid their salaries on time and a shortage of nurses is hurting the response to the coronavirus, said the People's Health Movement India,...

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Fri, 5 Jun 2020 14:28:48 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Electrical-fluctuations-from-virus-fast-forward-15319443.php
article15319443
WAILUKU, Hawaii (AP) — The electric company and the coronavirus are responsible for Hawaii residents moving into the future faster than other Americans.

Unprecedented declines in energy use and power generation during the pandemic created a slight electrical frequency disruption, The Maui News reported Thursday.

The deviation has resulted in several reports of electric clocks running a few minutes fast on Maui.

Hawaiian Electric says the reduced electricity use is largely a result of mass closures of hotels and other businesses across the state.

The economic disruption followed the implementation in March of health and movement restrictions for residents and a mandatory quarantine for travelers arriving from outside the state.

“We saw a significant reduction in use of electricity as tourism activities ceased, businesses closed, and thousands of residents stayed home to slow the spread of COVID-19,” Hawaiian Electric spokeswoman Shayna Decker said.

Decker explained U.S. electric grids operate at a target frequency of 60 hertz. While there are slight variations, the target level is maintained by utility grid operators who balance power generation and energy consumption.

Electric digital clocks, including those on ovens and microwaves, are designed to use the average 60 Hz frequency and even a slight deviation can affect the time on plug-in devices, Decker said.

“Such pronounced changes are something we haven’t experienced before and reflect how quickly and substantially business activity and individual behavior were affected by the pandemic,” Decker said.

The utility also experienced record-low daytime generation on sunny days when private rooftop solar systems supply the most energy, she said.

(THE CONVERSATION) Prairies once covered an enormous area of North America, but today have been reduced to a small fraction of this historical range. Imagine an area the size of Texas, the second largest state, shrinking over the course of decades to an area the size of Massachusetts, the sixth smallest state.

Prairie grasslands produce a lot of benefits, such as storing carbon in soil, providing habitat for wildlife and protecting the land from erosion. Government agencies, conservation organizations and homeowners are working to restore native prairie ecosystems in many parts of the central U.S., but it’s a daunting challenge. Often newly planted restoration sites end up covered with weeds.

I am an ecologist and have worked with other researchers for a decade to find the most effective ways of restoring prairies in the midwestern United States. Our newest finding points to a reason why planted prairies can fail, one that few had considered earlier: the weather during the year they are planted.

Restoring ecosystems to solve environmental problems

Ecological restoration improves the health of ecosystems that have been degraded – for example, returning water to drained wetlands or replanting heavily logged forests. It’s an important strategy for tackling many of the world’s most pressing environmental challenges.

Research shows that repairing damaged ecosystems provides critical habitat for plants and animals. It slows the impacts of climate change by drawing down carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere. It enhances crop pollination, prevents soil loss and keeps fertilizers out of waterways. For all these reasons, the United Nations recently declared...

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Fri, 5 Jun 2020 12:04:17 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Google-State-based-hackers-targeted-Trump-Biden-15318309.php
article15318309
BOSTON (AP) — Google said state-backed hackers have targeted the campaigns of both President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden, although it saw no evidence that the phishing attempts were successful.

The company confirmed the findings after the director of its Threat Analysis Group, Shane Huntley, disclosed the attempts Thursday on Twitter.

Huntley said a Chinese group known as Hurricane Panda targeted Trump campaign staffers while an Iranian outfit known as Charming Kitten had attempted to breach accounts of Biden campaign workers. Such phishing attempts typically involve forged emails with links designed to harvest passwords or infect devices with malware.

The effort targeted personal email accounts of staffers in both campaigns, according to the company statement. A Google spokesman added that "the timeline is recent and that a couple of people were targeted on both campaigns.” He would not say how many.

Google said it sent targeted users “our standard government-backed attack warning” and referred the incidents to federal law enforcement.

Graham Brookie, director of the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab, called the announcement “a major disclosure of potential cyber-enabled influence operations, just as we saw in 2016.”

His tweet referred to the Russian hacking of the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign and subsequent online release of internal emails — some doctored — that U.S. investigators determined sought to assist the Trump campaign.

Neither the Biden nor the Trump campaign would not say how many staffers were targeted, when the attempts took place or whether the phishing was successful.

Both campaigns have been extremely reticent about discussing cybersecurity.

On a per-share basis, the San Francisco-based company said it had a loss of 13 cents. Losses, adjusted for stock option expense and amortization costs, came to 2 cents per share.

The results exceeded Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of seven analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for a loss of 7 cents per share.

The work messaging service posted revenue of $201.7 million in the period, which also beat Street forecasts. Six analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $187.4 million.

For the current quarter ending in July, Slack expects its results to range from a loss of 4 cents per share to a loss of 3 cents per share.

The company said it expects revenue in the range of $206 million to $209 million for the fiscal second quarter.

Slack expects full-year results to range from a loss of 19 cents per share to a loss of 17 cents per share, with revenue ranging from $855 million to $870 million.

Slack shares have risen 69% since the beginning of the year.

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Elements of this story were generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on WORK at https://www.zacks.com/ap/WORK

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This story has been updated to correct that the company’s current quarter ends in July, not August.

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Thu, 4 Jun 2020 23:48:26 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/COVID-Washington-unemployment-fraud-might-be-15317588.php
article15317588
OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) — Washington officials said Thursday they believe they have recovered about half of the hundreds of millions in unemployment benefits paid to criminals who used stolen identities to file claims during the coronavirus pandemic.

Employment Security Department Commissioner Suzi LeVine said officials are still working to determine the final amount paid out fraudulently, but they believe it was between $550 million and $650 million. To date, the state has recovered $333 million, she said.

“We do believe there is still a significant amount we can get back,” she said.

The number of new claims for unemployment benefits in Washington dropped to just over 31,000 last week. LeVine said the drop is in part because of the ongoing anti-fraud efforts and because the economy is restarting under the state’s four-stage reopening plan that is bringing people back to work.

A West African fraud ring using identities stolen in prior data breaches, such as the massive 2017 Equifax breach, is believed to be behind the fraud, which has targeted nearly a dozen states, according to California cybersecurity firm Agari.

LeVine said that of claims that have been held up because of identity concerns, the claims of more than 51,000 people were resolved Wednesday night, and that $77 million in funds will be released to 32,000 people Thursday. The remainder have separate questions about their applications that require additional resolution, she said.

An additional 50,000 claims will take more time to resolve because LeVine said she believed about half of them to be fraudulent.

“The fact that innocent people are caught in a fraud net — which means their payments have been stopped or delayed — is the most infuriating and disheartening part of this effort,” she said.

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Thu, 4 Jun 2020 23:44:23 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Mexico-s-cuts-in-nature-archaeology-budgets-15318220.php
article15318220
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has cut budgets for things like archaeology, nature reserves and crime victims so deeply — about 75% in some cases — that parts of his own government cried foul Thursday.

López Obrador says the cuts are needed to raise money for hospitals during the coronavirus epidemic, and refuses to borrow money or run up budget deficits, even though many government are doing so now.

Researchers at the National Institute of Anthropology and History, known as the INAH, said in a letter circulated Thursday that the institute’s budget is being cut 75% even though it oversees 193 archaeological sites that are open to the public and hundreds more that aren’t.

“The INAH is in danger of being left paralyzed,” said the letter from researchers, noting the budget cuts announced May 22 put at risk more than just research and education. The country's pre-Hispanic ruins and colonial buildings are under constant threat from looting, vandalism and disrepair.

The commission that oversees Mexico’s 182 nature reserves and parks, meanwhile, said it is “worried” and has asked that some money be restored.

“We have started a permanent dialogue with various arms of the Mexican government to revise the budget cut,” the National Protected Areas Commission said in a statement.

Even more than the archaeological sites, Mexico's nature reserves are under constant threat from loggers, wildlife collectors and even drug cartels that use parks to set up clandestine drug labs.

Also on Thursday, the governmental National Human Rights Commission urged López Obrador to back off on cuts to the Commission for Attending to Crime Victims, a body that provides financial and other types of support for families of the disappeared...

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Thu, 4 Jun 2020 23:04:02 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Groups-seek-to-stop-copper-mine-near-popular-15317814.php
article15317814
BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — Conservation groups want a Montana court to cancel the approval of a long-disputed copper mine that they say would pollute a tributary of one of the state's most popular recreational rivers.

Montana Trout Unlimited and other groups filed a lawsuit Thursday alleging state officials did not thoroughly study the environmental harm that could result from the Black Butte copper mine in central Montana.

The Montana Department of Environmental Protection and Tintina Montana Resources were named as defendants in the complaint filed in state district court in Meagher County.

State officials said in approving the mine in April that it would have to abide by some of the most stringent conditions ever issued for a hardrock mine in Montana.

DEQ spokeswoman Rebecca Harbage said the agency had not yet received the lawsuit and had no immediate response.

A Tintina subsidiary, Sandfire Resources is seeking about $300 million to develop the project, which is expected to bring in about $2 billion in revenue.

Opponents of the mine say it will pollute a tributary of the Smith River.

They point to ongoing mining pollution in other parts of the state that occurred when companies went bankrupt and state and federal agencies had to take over cleanup efforts.

“We aim to pass a healthy Smith River on to future generations, not a legacy of more mine pollution and taxpayer cleanup,” said David Brooks, Montana Trout Unlimited executive director.

Sandfire Resources vice president Nancy Schlepp said the company was “disappointed but not surprised at the lawsuit.”

“No major natural resource project in Montana goes unchallenged," Schlepp said, adding that all environmental issues had been addressed during the permitting process.

The Vancouver, British Columbia-based company said it had a loss of 11 cents per share.

The results fell short of Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of three analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for a loss of 5 cents per share.

The maker of natural-gas engine technology posted revenue of $67.2 million in the period.

In the final minutes of trading on Thursday, the company's shares hit $1.40. A year ago, they were trading at $2.82.

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This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on WPRT at https://www.zacks.com/ap/WPRT

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Thu, 4 Jun 2020 22:18:24 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Influencer-Jake-Joseph-Paul-faces-charges-after-15317541.php
article15317541
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Social media influencer Jake Paul faces misdemeanor charges following a riot at a mall outside Phoenix, police said Thursday. Paul, who has 20 million followers, says he was merely trying to find people protesting against the death of George Floyd.

Paul, 23, was identified as a participant in a riot last Saturday night at Scottsdale Fashion Square and has been charged with criminal trespass and unlawful assembly, the Scottsdale Police Department said in a statement.

Police determined that “Paul was present after the protest was declared an unlawful assembly and the rioters were urged to leave the area by police." He entered and remained inside of the mall when it was closed, police said.

Sgt. Benjamin Hoster said he didn’t know whether Paul has an attorney and that he was issued a summons to appear in court “in a month.”

Paul, who has over 20 million YouTube subscribers, said in video posted Wednesday, that he and friends went to the mall to attend a protest against the death of George Floyd while in custody of Minneapolis.

They instead found people engaged in looting and property damage that included shattered windows of offices and stores, Paul said, adding that he didn't participate in that activity.

“That’s the way it looked on camera. However that isn’t the case,” he said.

Paul said he kept walking in the mall area despite encountering the criminal activity because he still wanted to find the protest.

He said it was upsetting that social media posts accused him of vandalism. "I'm above that. I don’t’need to vanadalize. I don’t need to loot and I know it’s not the way forward."

Paul said he was an “easy target" and that he has learned a lesson about entering situations that could pose problems. "But it’s not...

WASHINGTON (AP) — Nearly 1.9 million people applied for U.S. unemployment benefits last week, evidence that many employers are still cutting jobs even as the gradual reopening of businesses has slowed the pace of layoffs. The total number of people who are receiving jobless aid rose slightly to 21.5 million, down from a peak of nearly 25 million two weeks ago but still at a historically high level. It shows that scattered rehiring is offsetting only some of the ongoing layoffs with the economy mired in a recession. The latest weekly number is still more than double the record high that prevailed before the viral outbreak.

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China easing airline access amid conflict with Washington

BEIJING (AP) — Chinese regulators say more foreign airlines will be allowed to fly to China as anti-coronavirus controls ease. But it was unclear whether that will defuse a fresh conflict with the Trump administration over air travel. Washington said earlier it would bar four Chinese airlines from the United States because Beijing was failing to allow United Airlines and Delta Air Lines to resume flights to China. The dispute adds to U.S.-Chinese strains over trade, technology, Taiwan, human rights and the status of Hong Kong.

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Vegas, baby! Casinos reopen after long coronavirus closure

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Mask use was spotty among customers as casinos in Las Vegas and throughout Nevada reopened Thursday for the first time since March. Downtown and suburban casinos were first to open after midnight, and Las Vegas Strip resorts opened later in the morning in a nod to recent nighttime protests over the death of George Floyd. Employees wore masks, but not many customers, at about a dozen places that one casino devotee...

On a per-share basis, the Reston, Virginia-based company said it had net income of 62 cents. Earnings, adjusted for costs related to mergers and acquisitions and amortization costs, were $1.38 per share.

The results fell short of Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of six analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of $1.41 per share.

The information technology company posted revenue of $1.76 billion in the period, beating Street forecasts. Four analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $1.73 billion.

SAIC expects full-year earnings in the range of $5.80 to $6.10 per share, with revenue in the range of $7.1 billion to $7.3 billion.

SAIC shares have risen nearly 3% since the beginning of the year. In the final minutes of trading on Thursday, shares hit $89.48, an increase of 15% in the last 12 months.

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This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on SAIC at https://www.zacks.com/ap/SAIC

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Thu, 4 Jun 2020 20:31:27 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Russia-defends-Iran-satellite-launch-against-US-15317825.php
article15317825
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Russia is defending Iran’s right to launch a satellite, dismissing U.S. claims that Tehran was defying the U.N. resolution endorsing the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and six major powers by sending it into space.

Russia’s U.N. ambassador, Vassily Nebenzia, said that “the ongoing attempts of the United States side to deprive Iran of the right to reap the benefits of peaceful space technology under false pretexts are a cause for serious concern and profound regret.”

He dismissed as “”misleading" U.S. accusations that the April 22 satellite launch carried out by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps went against the 2015 resolution, which calls on Iran not to undertake any ballistic missile-related activities capable of delivering nuclear weapons.

“Iran has never possessed nuclear weapons, nor does it possess these weapons now, nor, we expect, will it ever possess them in the future,” Nebenzia said in a letter to Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the Security Council circulated Thursday.

Since the Iran nuclear deal was adopted in 2015, he said, “Iran has been the most verified state by the International Atomic Energy Agency” and “it is an established fact that Iran does not possess, nor develop, nor test or use ballistic missiles designed to be capable of delivering nuclear weapons.”

The Russian ambassador was responding to a letter from U.S. Ambassador Kelly Craft to the council president last month saying that “space launch vehicles incorporate technologies that are virtually identical to and interchangeable with those used in ballistic missiles designed to be capable of delivering nuclear weapons.”

“We once again urge the international community to hold Iran accountable for its actions,” she wrote. “Iran’s further development of ballistic missile...

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Thu, 4 Jun 2020 20:11:38 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Stud-Autonomous-vehicles-won-t-make-roads-15316897.php
article15316897
DETROIT (AP) — A new study says that while autonomous vehicle technology has great promise to reduce crashes, it may not be able to prevent all mishaps caused by human error.

Auto safety experts say humans cause about 94% of U.S. crashes, but the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety study says computer-controlled robocars will only stop about one-third of them.

The group says that while autonomous vehicles eventually will identify hazards and react faster than humans, and they won’t become distracted or drive drunk, stopping the rest of the crashes will be a lot harder.

“We're still going to see some issues even if autonomous vehicles might react more quickly than humans do. They're not going to always be able to react instantaneously," said Jessica Cicchino, and institute vice president of research and co-author of the study.

The IIHS studied over 5,000 crashes with detailed causes that were collected by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, separating out those caused by “sensing and perceiving” errors such as driver distraction, impaired visibility or failing to spot hazards until it was too late. Researchers also separated crashes caused by human “incapacitation” including drivers impaired by alcohol or drugs, those who fell asleep or drivers with medical problems. Self-driving vehicles can prevent those, the study found.

However, the robocars may not be able to prevent the rest, including prediction errors such as misjudging how fast another vehicle is traveling, planning errors including driving too fast for road conditions and execution errors including incorrect evasive maneuvers or other mistakes controlling vehicles.

For example, if a cyclist or another vehicle suddenly veers into the path of an autonomous vehicle, it may not be able to stop fast enough or steer away in time,...

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Thu, 4 Jun 2020 19:22:59 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Study-shows-Spain-far-from-having-herd-immunity-15317631.php
article15317631
MADRID (AP) — A second round of random testing in Spain for antibodies to the new coronavirus indicates that a third of those infected do not develop symptoms, Spanish health authorities said Thursday.

“It is a wake-up call for public health: it is not possible to control (an outbreak) by just considering those who are symptomatic,” National Epidemiological Center Director Marina Pollán said.

“With this number of asymptomatic cases, we must follow the recommendations” for personal hygiene and social distancing, Pollán said.

Results from the latest round of the nationwide testing confirmed preliminary finding published three weeks ago showing that blood tests detected the IGG antibody against the virus in only 5% of the 63,000 participants.

Researchers say that means Spain is far from having developed a “herd immunity” to COVID-19 and is still vulnerable to more outbreaks.

Over 95% of the people tested in the first round continued in the study for the second round. There will be one more round of testing before the study concludes.

Spain is rolling back the rules of the country's two-month lockdown. The country was one of the hardest-hit by the pandemic in the world with over 27,000 virus-related deaths.

The Health Ministry’s top virus expert, Fernando Simón, acknowledged that regional authorities are “correcting” their data and said he expects the national totals of deaths and infections to undergo revisions.

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Thu, 4 Jun 2020 18:55:23 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Maine-higher-ed-leaders-prep-reopening-more-15316818.php
article15316818
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Localized data about the coronavirus outbreak show that Maine's cities have seen higher rates of infection than rural areas, according to data released by the state.

The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention released the data for 55 of the state's 400 ZIP codes on Wednesday, the Portland Press Herald reported. The state said it released limited data to protect patient privacy.

Lewiston had the most cases of any ZIP code in the state at 203. One of Portland's ZIP codes had the highest rate of the infection, with one for every 110 people. Even though cities were affected most, some rural areas, including the town of Medway, were also hard hit.

Maine is the last state in New England to release local data about the virus. It had previously only made county-level information available. Maine CDC director Nirav Shah said it's important for residents to behave as if the virus is in their community even if it isn't.

“Even though your ZIP code might not have any cases in it right now, that shouldn’t impact how live your life," Shah said.

There have been more than 2,400 cases of the virus recorded in Maine. The state reported 28 new cases and no new deaths on Thursday. For most people, the virus causes mild or moderate symptoms. For some, especially older adults and the infirm, it can cause more severe illness and can lead to death.

In other news related to the virus:

RURAL REOPENING

The administration of Gov. Janet Mills, a Democrat, said Thursday that 13 counties in the state will be allowed to open more businesses on June 12. The reopening applies to businesses such as gyms, fitness centers and tattoo parlors. The businesses were originally slated to reopen July 1.

The ministry's spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, said the claim concerning a 2015 hacking attack on the German parliament was “absurd” and “unfounded.”

Last week, the German Foreign Ministry summoned the Russian ambassador to say it would be pursuing EU sanctions against Russian citizen Dmitriy Badin, an alleged officer with Russia’s GRU military intelligence agency. Badin was already being sought by U.S. authorities and is believed to be part of the hacker group known as APT28, or Fancy Bear.

Chancellor Angela Merkel said earlier this month there was “hard evidence” that correspondence from her parliamentary office was among the documents targeted in the attack.

Speaking at a briefing, Zakharova dismissed the German allegations and emphasized that they were based on information from the United States.

“We resolutely reject the unfounded German allegations of Russian government structures' involvement in the 2015 hacking attack on Bundestag,” she said, describing them as “nonsense.”

“Since 2015, Germany hasn't offered any single (piece of) evidence of Russia's involvement and hasn't even explained what is the basis for the accusations against our country,” Zakharova said.

Zakharova challenged Berlin to provide proof of Russian involvement, saying that Moscow stands ready for a detailed discussion on the subject and will see the failure to show documentary evidence as a proof that the accusations were unfounded.

“If Germany indeed has documentary proof of somebody's guilt provided by Washington, Russia is ready to consider it,” she said. “Nothing can be easier...

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Thu, 4 Jun 2020 16:05:12 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Calorie-data-on-menus-could-generate-significant-15316948.php
article15316948
Current federal law requiring restaurants to post calories on their menus would help diners make healthier choices and could ultimately lead to fewer cases of heart disease and diabetes, according to new research.

Between 2018 and 2023, the public's response to the nutritional labels at restaurants could prevent 14,698 cases of cardiovascular diseases, including 1,575 deaths and 21,522 Type 2 diabetes cases, the modeling study estimates. The findings were published Thursday in the American Heart Association's journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes.

The Food and Drug Administration in May 2018 began mandating that calories be listed on menus and menu boards of restaurants that are part of a chain of 20 or more locations.

On April 1, the agency said it would provide temporary flexibility to restaurants until the coronavirus health emergency is over.

"We have a fast-moving pandemic overlaid on a slow-moving pandemic – a combination of acute infectious stress on top of our nation's growing poor metabolic health over 40 years," said Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian, one of the lead authors of the study and dean of Tufts University's Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy in the Boston area. "COVID-19 highlights the critical need to ensure Americans have sufficient healthy food."

He said diet-sensitive conditions, such as diabetes, hypertension and obesity, each raise the risk of severe symptoms from COVID-19 and increase the risk of hospitalization.

Mozaffarian and his colleagues used a computer prediction model to estimate that consumers choosing lower-calorie items in response to the menu calorie law over a lifetime could reduce obesity and produce net savings of $10.4 billion in health care costs and $12.7 billion in "societal" costs associated with...

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Thu, 4 Jun 2020 14:30:10 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Germany-France-hope-cloud-data-project-to-boost-15316676.php
article15316676
BERLIN (AP) — Germany and France on Thursday launched a project to set up a European cloud computing platform that they hope will enhance European economic sovereignty in the wake of the coronavirus crisis and break the continent's dependence on U.S. and Chinese companies.

The platform, entitled GAIA-X, is meant to be up and running — at least in prototype form — at the beginning of next year and be open to users from outside Europe that commit to adhere to European standards. German Economy Peter Altmaier said that the aim is “nothing less than a European moonshot in digital policy.”

Germany and France will set up a non-profit association to coordinate and organize the data infrastructure, Altmaier said. Conceived last year and initially announced in October, GAIA-X follows on the heels of an existing push by the European Union's two biggest economies to set up a car battery consortium aimed at catching up with Asian rivals.

The cloud computing project “could not have been more timely" as Europe tries to dig itself out of a deep recession caused by the coronavirus crisis, French Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire said.

“With the COVID crisis, companies massively shifted to teleworking. This makes the need for (a) secure and European cloud solution all the more urgent,” Le Maire told a news conference by video link from Paris.

“The crisis also showed that the giant tech companies are the winners ... the European digital space has to be protected,” he added, pledging that the new platform “will ensure the application of policy rules based on EU values and standards.”

“We are not China, we are not the United States — we are European countries with our own values and our own economic interests that we want to defend," Le Maire said. He stressed...

Mari Webel, University of Pittsburgh and Megan Culler Freeman, University of Pittsburgh

(THE CONVERSATION) People have turned to historical experience with influenza pandemics to try to make sense of COVID-19, and for good reason.

Influenza and coronavirus share basic similarities in the way they’re transmitted via respiratory droplets and the surfaces they land on. Descriptions of H1N1 influenza patients in 1918-19 echo the respiratory failure of COVID-19 sufferers a century later. Lessons from efforts to mitigate the spread of flu in 1918-19 have justifiably guided this pandemic’s policies promoting nonpharmaceutical interventions, such as physical distancing and school closures.

Current discussions about scaling back social distancing measures and “opening up” the country frequently refer to “waves” of disease that characterized the dramatic mortality of H1N1 influenza in three major peaks in 1918-19. As COVID-19 rates begin to steady in some parts of the U.S., people today are nervously eyeing the “second wave” of influenza that came in autumn 1918, that pandemic’s deadliest period.

Waves evoke predictability, however, and COVID-19 has been hard to predict. Despite the valuable lessons drawn from past influenza outbreaks, how pandemic influenza struck in 1918 isn’t a template for what will happen with COVID-19 in the coming months.

As a historian and a virologist, we believe this comparison of two pandemics has contributed to public confusion about what to expect from “flattening the curve.” Key divergences in the sociopolitical contexts of 1918-19 and now, in addition to clear virologic differences between influenza and SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, mean their...

(THE CONVERSATION) With the U.S. and much of the world engulfed in the COVID-19 pandemic, travel restrictions and health risks have threatened to make study abroad difficult, if not impossible.

But that doesn’t mean students won’t still want to learn about other cultures and see how people in other parts of the world approach different issues, such as climate change, income inequality or human rights.

Ideally, students would learn about these things in different cultural contexts by actually going to other countries. But since travel abroad to certain countries is off-limits or discouraged due to COVID-19, the question now becomes: How can study abroad still be done?

As a longtime proponent of international education, one solution I see – and one that more and more universities are beginning to pursue – is to have students study abroad online.

American University, Arcadia University Northeastern University and the University of Buffalo are already advancingvirtual study abroad. Their programs range from online courses at a U.S. university’s international branch campus to courses offered in partnership with foreign universities.

A new approach

These options involve courses designed and taught by either U.S. professors or professors based abroad selected and trained by a U.S. college or university. This is done to make sure the course aligns with the student’s graduation requirements.

But I see another way to do virtual study abroad that I believe would radically change the way it is done. And that is, U.S. colleges and universities could offer courses from other parts of the world precisely as they...

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Thu, 4 Jun 2020 12:22:22 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Oklahoma-health-agency-reverses-decision-on-15315523.php
article15315523
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The Oklahoma State Department of Health on Wednesday reversed course on its decision from earlier this week to no longer release COVID-19 infection data by city and zip code.

The agency made the move after consulting with Attorney General Mike Hunter, who advised them releasing epidemiological information for statistical purposes is legal as long as no individual person can be identified.

Hunter said in a statement the release of the more detailed infection data by locality “threads the needle of providing up-to-date information to the public while protecting the privacy of Oklahomans."

Lawyers for the health department and the governor’s office made a decision earlier this week to no longer release the data because of state medical privacy laws. They claimed they were able to release the data under the Catastrophic Health Emergency Powers Act, which gave the governor the authority to suspend any state law that might hinder the response to a health emergency. The Legislature opted late last month not to renew those powers for the governor.

The head of the Oklahoma Press Association, the trade group for the state's newspaper industry who had criticized the move, said he welcomed the quick decision to reverse course.

“Nobody wants to invade the medical privacy of our fellow Oklahomans," said OPA Executive Vice President Mark Thomas. “We must not allow rumors and online gossip platforms to spread misinformation when facts are readily available."

Gov. Kevin Stitt’s Secretary of Health Jerome Loughridge and Interim Health Commissioner Lance Frye said in a joint release with Hunter that they alowelcomed the decision.

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Wed, 3 Jun 2020 23:32:04 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Maryland-to-begin-second-stage-of-coronavirus-15315324.php
article15315324
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Maryland will begin its second stage of reopening later this week by lifting the order that closed non-essential businesses in response to the coronavirus, Gov. Larry Hogan announced Wednesday.

The order will be lifted Friday at 5 p.m. That will enable large and small retail shops to open, as well as wholesalers and warehouses. Offices including information technology firms, legal offices, banking and financial institutions can open as well. Hogan said personal services such as nail salons and tanning salons can reopen with 50% capacity and by appointment only.

Face coverings will be encouraged whenever face-to-face interactions take place, Hogan said. Businesses are also being encouraged to implement a screening process, including temperature checks for personnel based on guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and state health department.

“Businesses are also strongly encouraged to develop plans which limit the proximity of employees by rotating employee hours, instituting split schedules, shifts, shorter work weeks or staggering start, break or shift times,” Hogan said at a news conference.

The governor emphasized that just because people will be allowed to return to work doesn't mean they necessarily should. Hogan said people who can work from home should continue to do so.

“No worker wants to give this virus to his or her coworkers, and no employer wants an outbreak at his or her workplaces,” Hogan said.

He also said state government agencies will return to more normal operations. The Motor Vehicles Administration will begin a phased reopening at select branches on a limited basis by appointment only with staff wearing face coverings.

“With more Marylanders going back to work, we will also begin...

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Wed, 3 Jun 2020 22:01:22 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Heart-patients-avoided-ERs-as-coronavirus-hit-US-15315143.php
article15315143
NEW YORK (AP) — Emergency room visits in the U.S. for chest pain and heart attacks fell early this spring, according to a study that supports fears that the coronavirus outbreak scared away people from going to the hospital.

ER visits were up for respiratory illnesses and pneumonia, but were down for nearly every other kind of injury or ailment, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Wednesday.

Overall, fewer ER patients showed up: Visits were down 42% in a four-week period that stretched from late March through most of April, compared to the same time last year.

At the time, hospitals is some U.S. cities — most notably New York — were overwhelmed treating COVID-19 patients. But the CDC study covers 43 states, and saw big declines, particularly in visits involving preteens.

Some of that may be good news — there may have been fewer injuries from some types of accidents, for example, because people were staying at home and not doing as many risky things at work or play.

But some experts worry about the CDC finding 1,100 fewer visits per week for heart attacks, and 24,000 fewer for chest pain.

The finding seems to parallel death certificate reports. In each of the first three weeks of April, the nation saw 2,000 more deaths than normal in a category that is primarily heart attacks.

That may be the result of some patients worrying more about catching the coronavirus at a crowded ER than their heart problems, some experts think.

“There’s a lot of evidence that suggests people are afraid to interact with medical care, and are deciding not to act on their symptoms,” said Wayne Rosamond, a University of North Carolina researcher who studies heart disease and stroke trends.

The San Mateo, California-based company said it had a loss of 37 cents per share. Earnings, adjusted for one-time gains and costs, were 9 cents per share.

The results exceeded Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of five analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for a loss of 6 cents per share.

The provider of software to the insurance industry posted revenue of $168.2 million in the period, also beating Street forecasts. Four analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $152.5 million.

For the current quarter ending in July, Guidewire Software expects its per-share earnings to range from 41 cents to 49 cents.

The company said it expects revenue in the range of $204.9 million to $212.9 million for the fiscal fourth quarter. Analysts surveyed by Zacks had expected revenue of $213.6 million.

Guidewire Software expects full-year earnings in the range of 84 cents to 92 cents per share, with revenue ranging from $703.5 million to $711.5 million.

Guidewire Software shares have increased slightly since the beginning of the year. In the final minutes of trading on Wednesday, shares hit $110.17, a rise of 14% in the last 12 months.

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This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on GWRE at https://www.zacks.com/ap/GWRE

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Wed, 3 Jun 2020 20:29:11 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Snapchat-to-stop-promoting-Trump-amid-uproar-15314912.php
article15314912
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Snapchat will stop “promoting” President Donald Trump on its video messaging service, the latest example of a social media platform adjusting how it treats this U.S. president.

Last week, Twitter placed fact-check warnings on two Trump tweets that called mail-in ballots “fraudulent” and predicted problems with the November elections. It demoted and placed a stronger warning on a third tweet about Minneapolis protests that read, in part, that “when the looting starts the shooting starts.”

Snapchat’s action is more limited. It means only that the president’s posts will no longer show up in the app’s “Discover” section, which showcases news and posts by celebrities and public figures. Trump’s account will remain active on Snapchat and visible to anyone who searches for or follows it.

The decision, which Snap — the owner of Snapchat — says was made over the weekend, puts the Santa Monica, California-based company in Twitter's camp after that company escalated its actions against Trump.

Facebook, meanwhile, has let identical posts stand, although the company and CEO Mark Zuckerberg face growing criticism over the decision.

“We will not amplify voices who incite racial violence and injustice by giving them free promotion on Discover,” Snap said in a statement Wednesday. "Racial violence and injustice have no place in our society and we stand together with all who seek peace, love, equality, and justice in America.”

Snapchat has 229 million daily active users. Twitter, by comparison, has 166 million. Unlike Twitter and even Facebook, Snapchat is generally used as a private communications tool, with friends sending each other short videos and images and, to a lesser extent, following celebrities and other accounts.

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Wed, 3 Jun 2020 20:19:43 UThttps://www.timesunion.com/sports/article/Stadium-virus-prevention-steers-spotlight-toward-15314867.php
article15314867
The metal detectors every sports fan has become accustomed to at the gate might soon be accompanied by thermal body scanners as part of the gargantuan task of preventing the spread of the new coronavirus and other airborne diseases.

And that might be just one thing the public will need to be comfortable with in order to bring games back for in-person viewing.

Tickets have widely transitioned from paper souvenirs to smartphone screens, but how about using your face as your proof of purchase Nascent forms of crowd monitoring — like laser-driven density detection and camera-based calculations of line length — will likely grow faster in a post-pandemic era of live sports that must highlight hygiene.

“The pandemic really ups the need for greater assurance of stadium safety,” said Bob Boland, an athletics official who teaches at Penn State and has more than two decades of experience in sports and law as an instructor, consultant and agent. "Vaccine treatments, containment, they all could be game-changers, but people will need to be comfortable with mass body temperature screening and other technology that could be in play.”

Not unlike the aftermath from the 2001 terrorist attacks, when long waits to pass through magnetometers and have a security guard wave a wand over pants pockets became the norm.

“After 9/11 we overdid it, meaning we were so intent on making every building be safe and everyone safe that we made it extremely inconvenient to go to games and events. But we said that it would get better over time, and it did,” said Marc Ganis, cofounder of the Chicago-based consulting firm SportsCorp. “Now how do you do that?”

Technology will be a vital piece of the puzzle. It will also further test a fan’s willingness to potentially sacrifice a little more privacy in exchange for the opportunity to sit...